Grace Cathedral
Good Words: Poetry and Grace
Welcome to the Year of Poetry
Every year Grace Cathedral chooses a theme to help provide focus and create new ways to grow as a community. Poetry and the literary arts are natural complements to the mission, ministries, and existing programs of Grace Cathedral. Akin to music’s role in the life of the church, poetry’s unique qualities can enhance and enliven our shared work.
Year of Poetry Anthology
Thank you for everyone who participated in submitting poems for the Year of Poetry. An anthology of favorite poems submitted by the Grace Cathedral Community during the past year is available online here and a small number of printed copies are available in the cathedral.
Read
Announcing the Year of Poetry
During the Year of Poetry we will be exploring the walls that separate us from each other and the words that help connect us.
Read Dean Malcolm Clemens Young’s announcement of the Year of Poetry.
Watch
Poet Susan Kinsolving
In the weekly series, #MoreGoodNews, Dean Malcolm Clemens Young has a conversation with poet Susan Kinsolving in celebration of the Year of Poetry.
Jay Hulme at The Vine Plus a Reading
November 15, 2023
Jay will be joining us as the guest preacher at The Vine, a contemporary worship experience with communion, and band-led songs of praise. Immeditaely after The Vine will be a rare opportunity to meet Jay, apoet, speaker, and one of the UK’s foremost transgender theologians. Author of the viral poem ‘Jesus at the Gay Bar,’ Jay will read from his new collection of poetry, The Vanishing Song; share his vision of cathedrals as queer/trans; and talk about transgender politics across the Atlantic.
Grace Notes: Litquake at Grace
April 21, 2023
Celebrate the cathedral’s Year of Poetry and National Poetry Month with Litquake, the largest independent literary festival on the West Coast. Returning for its 8th year to our gothic and gorgeous space, enjoy a special evening of exalted verse, celebrating the sacred and profane, domestic and divine, with poetry in the pews from a distinguished roster of poets. Curated and hosted by D.A. Powell, five celebrated poets will read from their latest collections: James Cagney, Henry Cole, Jewelle Gomez, Jacques Raincourt, and Rachel Zucker.
The Iliad at Grace: A Public Reading Event
May 13, 2023
Celebrating their 25th anniversary, The International Readers of Homer present a 12-hour, audience participation reading of Homer’s The Iliad. This all-day reading of Homer’s epic features the first complete translation of the poem by a woman, the noted classics scholar Caroline Alexander. Join us and add your voice to this unique participatory reading—and live the revival of the ancient art of public storytelling!
